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India's Congress Party Reshuffles Top Panel Ahead of Key Polls

Earlier this year, Congress trumped the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Karnataka assembly polls, the federally governing party's lone bastion in South India.
Sputnik
India's main opposition party, Congress, made a major reshuffle to its top decision-making body on Sunday.
Among the prominent names to find a spot in the Congress Working Committee (CWC) are the so-called rebels, who apparently don't share warm ties with the powerful Gandhi family, which has virtually led the party since India's independence from the British Raj in 1947.
Sachin Pilot, the former deputy state chief of Rajasthan who has been at odds with Ashok Gehlot, the top party leader and the state chief in the western state, was one of those named in the CWC.
Pilot and his arch-rival in the state Gehlot have been at loggerheads for years after the former was denied the chance to become state chief despite leading a winning campaign against the BJP in the 2018 assembly elections.
Recently, Pilot openly defied party warnings to launch a public demonstration against the Gehlot government, highlighting his alleged inaction against various incidents of corruption in the state.
Another so-called rebel who has been included in Congress' top panel is Shashi Tharoor. The Lok Sabha MP's ties with the party's former bosses, particularly Rahul Gandhi, remain frosty on account of his decision to contest the Congress' presidential polls against Mallikarjun Kharge last year.
Kharge, viewed as a Gandhi family loyalist, eventually became party chief, defeating Tharoor.
But Tharoor's decision to contest the polls against a candidate backed by the Gandhis reportedly did not go down well with them. Consequently, the parliamentarian from Kerala faced the brunt of party cadres, who openly criticized him for going against the Gandhis in the elections.
Following his inclusion in the CWC, Tharoor, however, sounded a conciliatory tone.
"As one who is aware of the historic role played by the CWC in guiding the party over the last 138 years, I am humbled and grateful to be part of this institution, and look forward to the opportunity to serve the party alongside my dedicated colleagues," he posted on X, formerly Twitter.
Another prominent rebel face who features in the list of CWC members is parliamentarian Anand Sharma, who previously wrote a scathing letter to former party president Sonia Gandhi demanding reforms in the Congress.
The development in the Congress Party comes at a time when it is preparing for key elections in five states - Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, and Mizoram - billed as the semi-finals ahead of next year's national polls.
Winning the forthcoming state polls is crucial for both the BJP and Congress, as both parties are trying to generate momentum before the 2024 general elections when Prime Minister Narendra Modi will seek a record third period. The Congress, meanwhile, is going all out to stop Modi from accomplishing the feat.
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